


gratia placendi

by Mossgreen



Series: 2770 ab urbe condita [42]
Category: 2770 ab urbe condita - Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ancient Rome, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Forced Nudity, M/M, Master/Slave, Non-Sexual Slavery, Slavery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-10-10 20:18:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17432846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mossgreen/pseuds/Mossgreen
Summary: (The delight of pleasing another)Ven and his master make a return trip to Osteria Nova. There is some slight awkwardness





	gratia placendi

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written in ages! I hope this makes up for the long wait.
> 
> (Note: Rated Mature; there is some sex at the beginning. If you want to skip that and read the rest, CTRL + F for _Breakfast_ and read from there.)

The morning began much as any other morning. Ven had gone to sleep in his master's bed, his master's tunic-clad body pressed to his own naked back. When he woke, it was to find his master's arm around him. He needed the latrine and gently eased himself from under the weight of his master's arm, careful not to disturb him. He glanced at the clock on the bedside table as he passed, heading to the private en-suite he was allowed to use if his master did not require it. It was early and he had time to wash, inside (the only time he was allowed to remove the butt-plug his master insisted he had in at all times – and he had to replace it the moment he could) as well as out, and brush his teeth before returning to bed.

He paused before slipping back under the covers. His master looked peaceful, at rest, and his sleep-tousled hair made him look younger. His mobile mouth which had an arrogant cast to it when he was awake was currently relaxed, turned up fractionally at the corners. Ven took a breath and slipped back under the covers, trying not to stiffen as his master put his arm over him again and pulled him close. He let out a silent sigh and closed his eyes again; his master was not a late riser except in comparison to his slaves – but they were all expected to be up early to see to their various chores, and Jupiter help them if they weren't.

He must have dozed off again; he was not sure how much later it was when he became aware of his master's hands running over him, smoothing and stroking his warm bare body, from his chest to his thighs to his arse and stomach. He shifted involuntarily and let out a small gasp because there was a nibbling at his ear and his master's breath was hot on his neck as he spoke.

"Such a treat to wake up to a pretty slave in my bed, pet. Especially a naked one."

He made a sound of acquiescence, still sleepy, though the feeling of the plug in his arse being removed brought him fully awake just as he found himself abruptly rolled over to sprawl face-down in the middle of the bed, his master behind him and his master's cock just touching his hole. There was a pause – he heard the pump-action of the bottle of lube his master kept on the bedside table – and a moment later his hips were gripped, firmly enough to bruise, and he was pulled abruptly backwards onto his master's prick.

He groaned into the mattress, trying to rock his hips a little, to make the stuffed-full feeling worth it, only to be held still, his master's legs pinning his own legs down, his master's balls firm against his own, his arse invaded completely by his master's cock.

"Patience, boy. You'll take what you're given and no more. And I see no reason for you to come this morning."

Ven nodded, rubbing his face against the mattress, his hands scrabbling a little against the sheet.

"A nice warm smooth-skinned body is such a pleasure to fondle," Master told him, running his hands over Ven's shoulders and back, down to his arse and hips, making Ven shiver. "A perfect arse to bugger."

Ven gave an abortive wriggle, his breath unsteady.

"You shameless little slut, pet. Very well." His master began to thrust into him, hard and fast, holding his hips bruisingly tight to prevent him from moving in any way, to either push back or get away. It wasn't long before Master stiffened behind him and Ven felt him spill, filling him with the warm liquid evidence of his completion. There was a pause before Master withdrew his softening cock and replaced it with the hard plastic plug Ven had worn all night, trapping his semen inside him.

"Soft and warm and thoroughly fucked," Master said, and slapped Ven's bum once, hard enough to leave a hand-print that would take a long while to fade. Ven gasped, stiffening before slumping back down. That had been painful – more so for being unexpected.

"Don't worry about coming yourself, we'll leave that for this evening. If you're good."

Ven let out a whimper of frustration before he could get control of himself. "Yes, Master."

"I should penalise you for that protest, pet," Master said, his hand moving to Ven's other cheek, which he caressed and squeezed possessively. "But I will not, and you may be grateful for my mercy."

Ven bit back another whimper and arched his back a little, pushing his arse up into his master's firm, almost painful, grasp. "Thank you, Master."

"Good boy. You will tidy up in here while I shower, then we shall take _iēntāculum_ , then you may dress before my clients arrive. Once I have seen them, you will book a cycleshaw for two to the Pincian Gate and the car parking there, and we will take a drive out to Osteria Nova. I have business to see to there."

"Yes, Master," Ven replied, hoping his master wasn't trying to leave bruises on his arse, although it felt as though he was. It hadn't escaped his notice that his master was going to keep him naked for the next hour or so – although it could be worse; he could have been forbidden to dress before calling the cycleshaw company.

"Up you get, boy," Master said, giving him another slap, though a softer one this time. "We will have _iēntāculum_ in the atrium. I think I will wear my green tunic today, the embroidered one."

He headed to the en-suite as Ven scrambled off the bed onto shaky legs, turning to make the bed before finding the requested tunic and laying it out over the neatly-smoothed counterpane. Master had dropped his previous day's clothing on the floor, as usual, and Ven consigned tunic and underwear to the laundry basket before picking up the discarded sleep-tunic, which he folded and tucked under his master's pillow. There was nothing else that needed to be done before his master finished in the shower.

Breakfast was spent with Ven on his knees, hands clasped behind his back, being hand-fed by his master. It was not a game he enjoyed, but he was improving at it, even if only from sheer necessity. He reached for his glass of milk at one point, receiving a reproving smack to the back of his head before his master picked the glass up and put it to his mouth.

The short meal was nearly over by the time Ven had gathered enough courage to ask, "Master... may I request a favour?"

He took the grape his master extended to him, glancing up at him with some trepidation, which was eased somewhat by his master's expression.

"That depends what it is, pet."

Ven took a breath. "May I leave the house for... fifteen minutes, while you receive your clients? Please?"

The sudden knot of apprehension untied itself as his master ran his hand through his hair. "You're a good boy, pet. Why?"

Ven chewed and swallowed the grape. "I... Well, Master, if we're going to Osteria Nova again, I'd like to take something for Briseis. If I may."

He happened to glance back up in time to see his master arch one patrician eyebrow.

"What, precisely?" 

"Something for her to... read." The slight hesitation came because he did not think that she could read (a lot of slave children could not), but he had planned on finding a copy of _Good Girl_ , a colourfully illustrated publication aimed specifically at kids like Briseis – he himself had been lucky enough to have had quarter-shares in several tatty copies of _Good Boy_ , its equivalent. The main stories were all much of a muchness; boy (or girl!) belonged to a freeborn male (or female!) citizen, who began each story by giving the main character a specific order, with ensuing adventures and hi-jinks following before the order was obeyed, or with the main character trying to put off obeying, and getting into scrapes until the order was obeyed.

"And perhaps... if I may, a treat?" he added as a cube of melon was presented to his mouth – very much not a treat for Ven, but it wasn't as though he could protest it, and it wasn't as though he was _allergic_ or something. Despite the taste, he licked his master's fingers clean of juice, hoping to keep his master's interest and thereby have more to eat.

"I presume by your tone that you mean candy?"

Ven nodded, swallowing the chunk of melon as quickly as he could. "Yes, Master."

"You may."

A segment of orange came next, and Ven managed to press a quick kiss to his master's fingertips as he accepted the fruit. "Thank you, Master."

"I will want to see a receipt on your return."

"Yes, Master," he said again, a little more subdued at the reminder that it was, technically, his master's money that he planned to spend. When you didn't even own the body you inhabited, let alone the clothes that covered it or the food that nourished it... He had to struggle, sometimes, to remember that, despite the fact he'd been owned longer than he'd been able to talk, or to walk.

He reminded himself that money was not the only reason his master might want to see the receipt; it could be for any number of reasons – to make sure he hadn't bought anything contraband.

Ven had deliberately over-estimated the time he would need for his errand; one of the small shops owned by the house next door was a small newsagents, which sold several magazines and comics, as well as having a selection of confectionery. Were it in any other part of Rome (like nearer the Forum or the Colosseum), Ven would have been willing to bet a week's _pecūlium_ that it would have also sold a selection of tourist tat – Colosseum key-rings, plushies in Praetorian uniform, mugs with the Emperor's face on, and numerous items decorated with the eagle-and-thunderbolt or SPQR symbols.

It didn't take him long to buy what he wanted and he was able to return within ten minutes with two issues of _Good Girl_ and a couple of lollipops, and the receipt. It had cost him no more than three sesterces of his savings, which was little enough, although not an expenditure he would willingly part with on a regular basis.

He returned to the house the same way he'd left it, via the side-door to the slave-quarters. Maybe he should have entered via the garden door; he could slip into his master's room almost unseen from there because it was on the same side of the house. From here, he would have to pass either in front or behind the _tablinum_ where Master met with his clients – Ven was absolutely certain that the house had been laid out the way it had was so that the master could keep an eye on who came and went from the slave-quarters.

He elected to go via the garden and the side-passage, closing the garden door behind him. Master was sitting at his desk, and the man in the office with him paid Ven about as much attention as he'd pay an ant on the floor. He laid out his master's outdoor shoes, and set his purchases down on his own cot for now, as Moss looked in.

"Master wants you, in the study."

Ven nodded. "Thank you."

The intercom system was a simple one, designed merely to summon a slave to take a message. It could not call to his master's rooms but could only call out from them – but owning a number of slaves, it was no inconvenience for their master to tell one of them to fetch someone else.

Ven pulled his tunic straight and paused to allow his master's client, a free citizen, to leave the _tablinum_ before entering.

"Pet, if any of my other clients wishes to see me to discuss business or anything else, you will set up an appointment for them for tomorrow morning. Otherwise, they will receive their usual dole into their accounts and may leave; I have no need of their services today."

"Yes, Master."

There was one client who insisted on having as early an appointment as he could. Ven listened, made sympathetic noises and suggested he put everything into an email and send it, so that his master could look at it in the meantime to make their time together tomorrow more productive. Everyone else looked either disappointed (one or two of them) or relieved (the vast majority; Ven suspected it was because they had fulfilled their obligation for the day and could get on with their own days).

Junio showed the last of them out as Ven returned to the study to inform his master what had been done, and that one of them was insisting on having his help in a court case, whatever help Master was willing to provide, anyway.

"Shall I call for that cycleshaw now, Master?" he asked, pausing in the doorway with his eyes lowered and his hands clasped in front of him, the very model of an attentive slave.

"Yes. From here to the resident citizens' parking outside the Pincian Gate," his master replied, as Ven stepped inside to place the call.

The journey was as hassle-free as it had been the last time; Ven's secretarial satchel held his _tabula_ , as well as his master's, and two old issues of _Ave! serve_ , as well as the two new issues of _Good Girl!_ , and a Phallusy bag that his master had passed to him to carry. It still weighed less than when he had to carry his master's laptop.

"Master... may I ask a question?" he ventured, once they were on the main road north, a little cautious because this was the second request of the day, when he tried not to make any as a rule.

"You may."

"You said, the last time, that your... that Elysia is _nexa_ and the situation is... complicated. May I ask wh... what you meant?" He had so very nearly said 'why', which was (on the whole) never a good question to ask!

There was a long silence, and Ven glanced at his master, worried he might have misspoken, said something wrong. His master had a perfect right to refuse to answer that question, he could have vetoed the asking of it in the first place. Master looked... more thoughtful than angry, though, and Ven relaxed fractionally.

"Her father was involved in a large criminal enterprise, and she was sold to pay off some of the creditors. Technically, she is listed as _nexa_ , though she is also semi _rea_ , although it was her father at fault and not her. She chose to remain in slavery rather than take her freedom or her father's creditors would hound her."

"Thank you for... telling me, Master," Ven said. Silence reigned as he watched the passing countryside, confused. It must have been a very big crime, or some enormous debt, if she thought she would be responsible for it after... however many years of servitude it had been, when she refused the offer of her freedom.

It was not long at all before they reached the gates to the village and were admitted. There was another car drawn up in the parking for the pink-painted residential home, and Ven gave it a curious glance before getting out of the car and moving to open the driver's door for his master.

There were other visitors to one side of the cool atrium when they went to sign in (more correctly, when they entered for Master to sign in): A tall citizen was sitting on one of the benches with his attendant slave (secretary?) and the pixie-child Briseis standing behind him. She was chewing a thumbnail, but her expression brightened on seeing Ven.

Ven gave her a little wave and she grinned, the expression lighting her face up.

"Ven!"

Ven hastily put his finger to his lips, though he couldn't help smiling. 

Master put the pen down and turned to the other citizen, paying the slaves with him precisely as much attention as he gave the potted plants dotted around the room. "Annius Faventinus."

"Varius Metellus."

They grasped arms before seating themselves either side of the table, on which was a tray with a pot of coffee and a plate of sliced fruit. Faventinus snapped his fingers and pointed at the coffee-pot, a wordless order which his slave hastened to obey, silently pouring a cup for each citizen before stepping back.

"I understand you wish to purchase Briseis, here," Faventinus said.

"Yes. I understand she is mainly a general skivvy and I wish her for an attendant for one of the residents I sponsor."

Ven saw the child about to burst out with something, and hastily put his finger to his lips again. She scowled but subsided, and Ven gave her a sympathetic look, remembering just how hard it was to learn the lesson that you were property and you should remain silent, even when you were the subject of the conversation.

"She's eight hundred ses," Faventinus said, over the rim of his coffee-cup.

It was Master's turn to snap his fingers now, and Ven was ready with his _tabula_ which he handed over silently. "I want to see her before I make any sort of agreement, of course."

"Of course." Faventinus turned in his seat. "Briseis, remember what we talked about? You need to undress for the citizen."

"But I..."

Ven twisted his fingers together; he would have liked to have been able to talk with the child first, to explain the sale procedure. A first sale was never fun – well, _no_ sale was ever fun, but the first sale was generally the worst because the slave being sold had very little idea of the procedure itself, as well as having all the attendant uncertainties about the master buying them. A citizen couldn't explain it from the slave's perspective unless he'd been a slave, and Faventinus did not strike Ven as the sort who'd ever been a _nexus_ or a _reus_.

"Don't argue, just do it – it will be quick." There was a firmness in Faventinus' voice, though not the steely sort of coolness Ven would expect a citizen to use to an adult slave refusing an order.

The pixie squeezed her eyes closed and slowly pulled her dress off, returning to chewing her thumb as she dropped her head, standing naked so the citizens could examine her for any injuries or bruising.

"Turn around all the way, and then you may get dressed again," Ven's master said quietly. 

She turned, colouring furiously, and hastily bent to pick her dress up. Ven stepped forward to turn it back the right way out and helped her back into it.

"It's all right, you're a very good girl," he told her quietly, and she looked up at him, eyes shining with unshed tears. 

"It's going to be all right," he added more firmly, squeezing her shoulder before stepping back into his place behind his master again.

"Eight hundred ses, then," Ven's master said briskly, pulling up the sale pages and filling in his details before passing the _tabula_ to Faventinus for the seller's details and then extending it to Briseis, who just looked confused.

Ven bent forward to whisper, "May I, Master?" in his owner's ear, before taking the _tabula_ and kneeling beside Briseis. 

"Remember what I showed you when we met, where to put your finger?" he said to her, quietly, wishing to interrupt the citizens as little as possible. "You need to put your finger there now, and then you and I will have the same master, and you'll get a bit more _pecūlium_."

She reluctantly touched her finger to the sensor and buried her head in Ven's shoulder as he passed the _tabula_ back to his master.

Ven didn't like to think what this interaction was going to cost him this evening; he'd spoken up in front of another citizen who would probably think he should firmly be reminded of his place, but it was an exceptional circumstance and maybe his master would be merciful for once.

"Come here, Briseis," Master said.

The child seemed not to have heard, but Ven turned her round and gave her a gentle push to encourage her to stand in front of her new master.

"Sir?"

"Master," he said, gently, coaching her.

She hiccupped. "Master," she whispered, so quietly even Ven had to strain to hear her.

"I think we should change your collar, and then you can take Ven to see your Oma – and he's got some things for you. Let me take your collar off." He reached out to unfasten the slave collar she had on, placing it on the table for Faventinus to take and pass to his slave.

"Ven?"

Ven didn't need to be told twice, reaching into his satchel and pulling out the Phallusy bag. His master took it and pulled out a pretty pink slave-collar in a child's size, with a silver-coloured tag hanging from it, with engraving on both sides.

"What's it say... Master?" Her voice was still barely a whisper.

Master smiled. " _I attend Elysia_ and _I belong to Drusus Varius Metellus_. Now, hold your plait out of the way." 

He picked it up and fit it around her neck, the lock closing with a gentle click. He slipped two fingers between the collar and her neck, checking the fit, and nodded, satisfied. "You two may run along. Annius Faventinus and I have an appointment to inspect the village."

"I shall email you the notes about what we decide," Faventinus put in, dryly.

"I'll let you know when it's time to go home, Ven," his master said. "Run along now."

Briseis slipped her hand into Ven's and he let her pull him along the corridor to the door to the peristylium. "I want to show Oma," she said, her free hand going to her new collar. "It's much prettier than the old one."

Ven grinned, though he was a little self-conscious at the fact he was probably going to have to admit outright that he was his master's _concubīnus_ as well as his secretary, although he had a shrewd idea she had guessed as much last time.

"Oma, Oma, look!" Briseis darted past him to where Elysia was sitting in the same chair as before, enjoying the warmth of the day from the shade of the colonnade. There was a tin of biscuits and a glass of _posca_ on the table in front of her.

"What's this, my dear?" she asked, looking up. "Stay still for a moment, I can't see what I'm supposed to be looking at."

Briseis stood still – as still as an eight-year-old could stand, anyway, being unable to keep from shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

"Your master's given you a new collar?" Elysia asked. 

Ven stepped forward. "Not exactly. My master - _our_ master has just bought her. She's to be your attendant properly and not just a skivvy for everyone now – I'm sure he'll tell you himself, when he's finished looking around the village, though."

"It's young Ven, isn't it? Do sit down, my neck can't take the strain of looking up you for long."

Ven grinned and sat down. 

"That's better, now I can see you properly. So you're young Drusus' pet _concubīnus_ , then. He's got good taste, I'll say that."

Ven opened his mouth to protest, closed it again and blushed red. He fidgeted a little as he recently bestowed bruises made themselves known, but that was a mild discomfort really.

"I wouldn't want you to think less of me for it, madam, and I am his secretary too," he said quietly, trying to recover his equilibrium.

"I don't. He's always preferred boys, but he's never had one so pretty as you – not that he's had very many, really. He seems to think you're special, somehow, although of course he doesn't talk about things like that with me. But I can tell, I've known him all his life." 

Ven grinned, and was about to say something but was forestalled by Briseis.

"You got something for me? Can I see? Please?"

"Grown-up conversations are boring, aren't they, dear? Do you think you can get something for Ven and you to drink – he looks like he might be thirsty, and this posca's getting warm."

"I promise I'll give it to you as soon as you're back," Ven said. "Shall I help you, and then it'll be even quicker?"

"All right." 

It was only a few minutes later when they were settled with a glass of ice-cold grape juice each and Briseis insisted on sitting on Ven's lap (it was odd, having someone in his lap where he was usually the one in his master's lap – when he was allowed). He'd hung his satchel over the back of his chair and reached for it, pulling out the comics and the lollipops and passing them over. "It's a treat, I can't bring you stuff every time. But I wanted you to have something nice, just for you."

She leaned over to put her glass on the table and straightened up before giving him a kiss on the cheek. "I never had anything like that before. Though... I don' read so well."

"It's all right, they're in pictures, with only a few words that your Oma can help you with," Ven told her. "I had some, when I was your age – only I had to share mine."

"Where was that, then?" Elysia put in, looking interested.

"An estate down in Campania – a villa with a farm, though not one of the big _lātifundia_. Just a modest thing, really – I wasn't even one of the slaves outdoors doing the farm work. Mama was a maid to the mistress and I was trained up as a houseboy."

"A what?" Briseis put in, looking up from the brightly-coloured magazine.

"A houseboy. A slave who keeps the house clean, and runs errands, and who maybe waits at table during dinner," Ven told her. "My master used to come up to Rome a lot for... I don't know, reasons. My mama died when I was about fifteen, and he decided to bring me up to Rome a few years later. There were several of us, all chained in the back of a van, driving up from Campania – it's a long way, when you can't see out and you can't get comfy. I was in Rome for... four years, then the master died and the mistress decided she didn't want the bother of two houses any more, so she decided to rent the Rome house and sell all the slaves who worked there, which included me. And so my master bought me then."

"Did you have to undress, too?" Briseis asked, in a quiet voice. 

"Yes. And he looked at my teeth, too, and asked me all sorts of questions." As well as looking at parts of him that Ven wasn't about to mention in this company! "Masters always make slaves undress when they want to buy them, so they can make sure they're not hurt."

"What's he like as a master?"

Ven considered. Her experience was going to be very different from his, of course. "He's all right. Fair. He doesn't like any nonsense, but you're still going to live here, you're not going to come to live in Rome. He wants you to look after your Oma, all the time, not just when nobody else wants you for anything."

"Can I learn to read?"

"I'm sure your Oma won't mind teaching you. I might be able to help, a bit, but I don't know how often Master visits here, or how often he'll let me come, too."

"How did you learn to read?" Elysia put in.

Ven shrugged. "I earned lessons from the steward, though he couldn't give me long at a time – maybe half-an-hour in an evening? Sometimes it was only five or ten minutes. And we had _Good Boy_ \- like that, but for boys," he added, for Briseis' benefit. "And a really tatty copy of _Ancient Rome for Children_ , which didn't have a cover any more. I must have read it hundreds of times. There were other books too, but mostly all the books were grown-up things."

"Do you read now?" Briseis asked.

"When I have time, yes. I like detective stories – stories about people who solve mysteries. And some history things. If you find something you like to read, it's a lot easier to like reading." He shrugged. "Maybe that's why free children don't like learning, because they have to and a lot of it's boring. Like... I bet you don't like cleaning, much, because you have to?"

"Young Drusus has an intelligent young man in you, Ven," Elysia informed him, and Ven coloured, lowering his eyes. 

"He only bought me as a house-slave, though. I'm still learning everything else." He couldn't reciprocate and ask Elysia about herself, not really, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to ask about his master – some things were best left unasked, after all.

His _tabula_ chimed suddenly and he reached to pull it out of his bag. There were two notifications and he opened the message app first, to learn that his master was on his way back and would be there in fifteen minutes or so. The second one puzzled him; it was on the Slave Registry's _pecūlium_ tracker app. He wasn't due any _pecūlium_ today, and they didn't generally send two notifications for one payment from a savings account – though stranger things had happened.

A deposit to his account of five sesterces had been added by his master, with a time-stamp of shortly before they'd left the house.

"Master will be back soon," he told them, returning his _tabula_ to his satchel. "I don't know how much time he'll have before we have to go, though."

Not much, as it turned out. Ven shifted Briseis off his lap and stood as Master came striding down the colonnade, a slave trotting behind him, ostensibly showing him the way but deflating when he realised the citizen knew precisely where he was going.

"No, don't get up," Master told Elysia, leaning down to give her a kiss. "I have to steal my secretary away, I have an appointment this afternoon that I cannot miss, but I shall be back next week."

"Will you bring Ven, sir – Master?" Briseis asked, glancing up before looking down at her feet.

He patted her head. "I'm sure I can do that. You be a good girl and look after your Oma – do you know how to work a _tabula_?"

"Sort of, sir – Master. Ven showed me last time."

"Well, I shall send you one with some programs to help you learn to read, and if you need anything else, or if you have any questions, you can send Ven a message, and he will tell me."

Briseis blinked up at him and threw her arms around him. Ven discovered something absolutely fascinating in the painted column he was standing next to, and Elysia merely let out a gentle laugh. "Briseis, dear, that probably isn't really a good idea."

Briseis stepped back, covered in confusion and looked as though she didn't quite know what to do with herself.

"It's all right, no harm done. Be a good girl. I will see you next week, both of you. Come, Ven!"

**Author's Note:**

> Translations:  
>  _iēntāculum_ \- breakfast  
>  _pecūlium_ \- pocket-money. In this world, the word also refers to a slave's savings to purchase his freedom  
>  _tablinum_ \- the study for the paterfamilias, where he carried out any business and received his clients  
>  _tabula_ \- tablet, meaning tablet computer in this setting  
>  _nexa_ \- feminine of _nexus_ , a person sold into slavery to pay off a debt, a debt-slave.  
>  _rea_ \- the feminine of _reus_ , a person condemned to slavery as punishment for a crime (the word actually means 'accused, defendant, culprit'; I have adopted it for those condemned to slavery – in this world, Latin is still a living language and words change meanings and acquire new ones all the time in living languages!)  
>  _peristylium_ \- colonnade around a courtyard garden  
>  _concubīnus_ \- enslaved male concubine, male bed-slave  
>  _posca_ \- a cheap, inferior wine  
>  _lātifundia_ plural of _lātifundium_ , a country estate using mostly slave labour for the farm chores.
> 
> Other Notes:  
>  _Good Girl_ and _Good Boy_ are comics more in the British sense than American-style comic-books; with several short stories in one issue, all following different characters, all illustrated. They all aim to show that 'master knows best' and 'an obedient slave is a happy slave'.


End file.
